Note: I wrote this story and it was published on another site a couple of years ago under one of my pen names. If you think you recognize it, that might be why. Since then, I've rewritten parts of it that I wasn't happy with and decided to post it here now. I hope you enjoy it!

Heather bought the Christmas tree while full of holiday cheer and it never occurred to her that she might need help once she got her prize home. Now as the petite redhead struggled to untie and pull the large tree from the top of her car, she almost wished she had given in to the lure of the plastic trees at the local department store. “At least they come in boxes,” she grumbled to herself. Then she remembered why the tree seemed like such a good idea in the first place.

As Christmas quickly approached, the realization sunk in that she’d be spending this holiday alone with only memories for company. Heather then began making plans to make the holiday as cheerful for herself as possible. That meant she tried to recreate some of the holiday traditions her family had enjoyed over the years together. Some of the most endearing memories of those Christmas traditions for her included a tree such as this and she had given in to nostalgia when she spotted the tree lot.

Nostalgia was all well and good, but she realized she hadn’t planned ahead and wrestling this tree off her car and into the house was going to take some effort. Especially now since it had snowed a few inches last night, making the path into the house somewhat risky. Taking a deep breath, she smiled as the scent of the fresh tree invoked images of past Christmases spent with her family. Those memories enveloped and comforted her. Then just as quickly, Heather let out a deep sigh as she thought of her only sibling, Dawn, who had moved half a world away and her parents who had both passed away a few years ago. Precious memories flooded her mind and she had to blink away hot tears as she renewed her struggle with the large tree.

It was at that moment, that the rope gave way and Heather and tree tumbled unceremoniously onto her snow packed driveway. “Ooomph!” she gasped as the heavy tree landed squarely on top of her small frame, practically knocking the air out of her.

As Heather was busy struggling to get free, she didn’t realize help was on the way in the form of Buddy Nowlin. Buddy and Heather had grown up next-door to each other and they’d spent just as much time fighting as playing over the years. Heather was mischievous and had enjoyed playing many a prank on her fun-loving neighbor, Buddy. His vacations home from college were always “enlivened” by her antics.

Even though he was quite fond of Heather, every once in a while, she’d go too far and wear down Buddy’s patience. She was always excused for her behavior by both sets of their parents and, in his opinion; she seemed to get away with murder. He could remember the way she’d stand behind whoever was defending her and stick her bratty tongue out at him. She loved taunting him when she had the chance.

Buddy took his revenge by praising the mature college girls he dated who had better things to do than play silly pranks. That tactic always got to her. Yet he had also been quite big brotherly when it suited him, too. While he might have enjoyed making her life miserable when it seemed justified, he didn’t allow anyone else to pick on her. That was his privilege as her next-door neighbor and pseudo big brother. Despite their many past battles, they’d spent many hours together and had been close until his last year of college when he’d gotten too busy with normal college activities to spend much time with his old friend. At least that was his excuse whenever asked. Then he’d left their small town for the big city immediately after graduation nearly a decade earlier and the two had lost contact.

Heather didn’t know he was intently watching her battle with the tree before walking over to assist. Now laughing he lifted the tree off her and peered down at the woman he barely recognized as his former friendly nemesis.

Sputtering and trying to brush snow off her, Heather scrambled to her feet and looked up into Buddy’s dancing eyes.

“Why hello, Buddy! When did you come home?” she asked lightly trying not to appear too embarrassed.

“I got here just in time to see you being attacked by the dreaded Christmas tree mugger!” Buddy teased while shaking the tree lightly in her direction. “Now aren’t you going to be a good girl and thank your knight in shining snow boots?”

“I would if he wasn’t such a smart ass!” Heather replied rolling her eyes at the man she barely recognized as her old friend and sparing partner. “Aren’t you home a little early for Christmas this year?”

“Yes, but I have ulterior motives,” Buddy replied, “I’m here on business as well.”

Surprised, Heather looked at him quizzically, “Business? What kind of business would bring you here?”

Winking, he replied, “It’s a secret!”

“Ugh! Same old Buddy!” Heather laughed and shaking her head, held out her hand for the tree.

“Nope. I’ll carry the tree, you open the door,” Buddy lifted the tree and motioned for her to walk ahead of him. Knowing it would be useless to argue; Heather turned and walked toward her front porch.

“I don’t suppose it’d be too much to have one of the neighbor kids shovel your walk now would it?” he growled as he struggled to keep his footing in the deep snow.

“Sorry! I didn’t have time to ask around today,” she called back as she attempted to mount her front steps. “Watch out! These steps are kinda slick. Sure you don’t want me to help you?”

Buddies snorted as he concentrated on keeping his balance and not fall flat on his face with Heather’s tree. “It’s just like Hardhead Heather to think she could wrestle this tree through the snow and into the house by herself!” he thought ruefully. But at the same time, he had to smile. Heather always had been an exasperating yet fun friend. He should have known she wouldn’t have changed much over the years.

Despite her troubles, he reminded himself. Buddy had learned from his parents that her sister, Dawn, and her military husband were stationed in another country. That alone would be hard on the sisters who had always been each other’s best friend but add to that, the fact that Heather’s parents had died within months of each other only a few years ago. He knew she had to be lonely. Watching the cute but spirited lady carefully walking up the steps in front of him, Buddy wondered what the men in this town were thinking to let her stay single. Heather may seem like a handful but he knew of ways to deal with that problem. He had to push those intriguing thoughts out of his head before he landed face down in front of her and that was not the way he planned to get her attention!

“Are you sure you don’t need any help?” Heather asked again as she watched Buddy sliding around on the ice-covered steps.

“I’m sure I don’t need your help!” he growled as he struggled to keep from falling. “What exactly were you thinking, letting your steps get in this condition?”

“The storm caught me off guard!” Heather heard the defensive tone in her voice and felt silly. She didn’t have to answer to him! He’d been gone for so long, gone without a word actually…besides, she hadn’t asked for his help, now had she? She turned to hurry and unlock the door before he could say anything else on the subject or notice the flush that had quickly colored her face.

Buddy followed Heather into her house, stomping the snow from his shoes as she quickly turned on lights. He looked around at the house he had spent countless hours in during his youth. Although Heather had added her own touches, it still felt like his home away from home.

Buddy quickly shook off those feelings and asked, “You want this in the usual place?”

Heather nodded, unable to speak and caught off guard by his familiarity. “Silly!” she chided herself. Being alone during the holiday season was making her overly sentimental. This was Buddy, her old friend.

It was at that moment that a forgotten memory came flooding back, causing her to make a sharp intake of air. Trying not to blush, Heather suddenly felt self-conscious and very aware of the man in the room with her. Buddy had become a most attractive man who carried himself with an air of confidence that surprised and intrigued her at the same time.

Heather took a deep breath and tried to remind herself again that this was just good ole Buddy! Right? Aww heck! What was wrong with her? It’s not like she was a hermit or anything. She’d gone out with someone very recently. Well, sort of recently.

Buddy was lost in thoughts of his own and didn’t notice his old friend’s distracted manner. Until the moment when their hands brushed up against each other as they tried to arrange the tree in front of the living room window. Startled they stopped and looked fully into each other’s eyes. He’d forgotten the green tints that colored her eyes. Heather wondered why his eyes suddenly looked so dark and inviting.

That’s when Buddy’s father’s voice boomed out from the direction of the front hallway, making them both jump. “Hey, Heather! You need to get this place shoveled you know!”

“And you might want to close the door behind you, too,” he continued as he entered the room.

“Hi, Mr. Nowlin! Sorry about that,” Heather greeted her neighbor while glaring at his son. “Yes, Buddy was just saying the same thing about the walkway. I’m going to take care of it tomorrow.”

“Good!” Zack Nowlin smiled looking at his son and his favorite neighbor. They looked like two kids caught with their hands in the cookie jar. This was even better than he could’ve hoped for.

Zack continued, “Heather if you can, the missus and I would appreciate it if you’d come over Christmas Eve and have dinner with us. It’s not the same without a houseful of kids and it looks like this degenerate son of mine is the only who can make it until Christmas day. What do you say?”

“Yeah,” she replied softly. Hearing him say her name almost made her weak at the knees. Again she wondered what was wrong with her. After all, she was a grown woman, not the silly nineteen year old she’d been the last time they’d been alone together. The thought of that last time shook her, and not just a little.

Maybe she could use a brandy. “I’m going to fix myself a brandy, would you care for one, Buddy?”

“Yeah, that sounds great. I’ll just get this tree set up while you do that, okay?” he answered wondering why her voice sounded so comforting.

As she left the room, he tried to shrug it off as just warm memories from being here in this place with her. But there was more. A sudden image flashed through his mind and he paused in his work while it played out.

The summer before his senior year of college had been a life changing one for him and Heather was part of the reason why. He’d always felt protective about the girl who’d been his neighbor most of his life, but that summer changed everything.

It started the first weekend he’d returned home. Heather was already a student at the local college and was quite popular with that crowd. They often spent the weekends frolicking at the local lake and that’s where he found himself one warm summer day.

Heather was there in a skimpy bikini, practicing her feminine wiles on a captive audience. As she pranced around and flirted in that outrageous outfit, Buddy wondered if she knew she was playing with fire and what the consequences could be. Scowling, Buddy made his way over to her although he wasn’t quite sure what he could do about the situation.

When Heather saw him she rushed over and threw her arms around his neck. “Buddy! You’re home!” she gushed happily.

She’d obviously missed the look on his face but it didn’t matter since he couldn’t help but smile at the attractive young woman who was looking up at him with such warmth.

“I guess you’d miss that fact since you’re never home these days,” Buddy replied.

“Ohhh, you know how it is,” Heather grinned and batted her eyes at him.

Before he could answer, Heather giggled and then sashayed away. “Some of us like to have a good time, you know!”

As Buddy had gotten older, the thought that some women could occasionally use a good swat on the seat of their pants would often occur to him and this was one of those times. It took all of his restraint to keep from swatting that saucy bottom of hers and somehow he managed to keep his head. Buddy had often thought about how much that particular girl could’ve used a spanking, but that was an urge he’d hidden deep down inside himself. This was certainly not the place to act on it.

As the summer progressed, Heather continued her foolish behavior and more often that not, Buddy found himself wondering if he should step in. But it wasn’t his place, he would remind himself and he’d try to forget about it.

The tension between them became worse as the summer went on and finally came to a head one hot summer night. That night Buddy had been invited to a birthday party at friend’s lake cabin; little did he know Heather would be there and in full flirt mode. As soon as he laid eyes on her, he knew he couldn’t hold back any longer.

Heather was wearing a scandalously short skirt and seemed to be taking delight in teasing every man in the room. Someone needed to talk some sense into the girl and he realized that someone just might be him, and he knew he might need to do more than talk.

The more Buddy saw of Heather that summer, the more he’d fantasized about taking that errant young lady over his knee and spanking her silly, but he’d fought those feelings thinking that it wasn’t appropriate. They’d been friends for far too long. Yet, at the same time, that was the very reason he should step in.

Heather was seriously tempting him but Buddy began rethinking his plan and decided it might be best to avoid her if he could, so he spent the night trying to ignore her and her wild behavior as best he could. It might have worked, too, if Heather hadn’t noticed how he avoided her and no matter how hard she tried she still couldn’t catch his eye.

It wasn’t until Buddy had decided that he’d had as much of the party as he could take that things came to a head. He’d tried to tell himself that he was too mature for that group, but the truth was that not matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t keep his mind off of Heather. He’d finally decided it was best if he went home.

Buddy had almost made it to his car when he heard Heather calling out to him, “Buddy, wait up! Where are you going?”

Heather laughed and held out her hand, “Let’s go for a walk and get to know each other again. I’ve missed you.”

Something in her voice made Buddy’s heart skip a beat, but he took her hand without another word and they walked away from the party toward the lake’s edge. A thousand thoughts crowded into his head as he marveled at how soft and small her hand felt in his. He suddenly wasn’t feeling like her big brother or her friend. This was something more.

Heather didn’t seem to notice his preoccupation and as they walked along the water’s edge, she prattled on and on about how much fun college was and told him about the new friends she’d made there. That’s when Buddy finally found his voice.

“Heather, you really shouldn’t be flaunting yourself and flirting like I’ve seen you do lately,” he scolded her. “It’s not right and you know it!”

“Ugh! You sound like an old man, Buddy!” Heather returned smartly, “What happened to my fun-loving buddy?”

“Watch it, Heather,” Buddy lowered his voice menacingly. “You’re playing with fire and if you don’t watch it you’re going to get burned!”

“Puh-leeeeze!” she returned, rolling her eyes.

“Do you really want to push me, young lady?” Buddy asked his patience with her fading quickly.

Heather paused and Buddy took the chance to glance around. They were alone on the beach without a soul in sight. In the distance, he could hear the noise from the party and realized because of the party music, no one would be able to hear them out here. His heart was pounding and his palm was itching, this could be the moment he’d been waiting for. All she’d have to do was push him just a little further and he just might act on his impulses and give her naughty behind the attention it so sorely needed.

At that moment, Heather made the move that would change both their lives. Tossing her head back, she looked him right in the eye and said, “I’m a big girl, Buddy, I can do whatever I want!”

That was all he needed to push him over the edge. Pulling her after him, Buddy made his way over to a large rock at the edge of the beach. It was just the right height for him to sit on, which he did, quickly pulling the struggling Heather up and over his lap.

“What do you think you’re doing, you big brute?” she squealed as she tried in vain to escape from his grasp.

“I’m giving you exactly what you’ve been in need of, you brat!” Buddy sternly replied, taking a good hold of her waist with one hand, while pulling up her skimpy skirt with the other. The filmy panties she wore would be of little protection, but he pulled them down anyway with a shake of his head.

“What do you think you’re doing running around in an outfit like this anyway?” he asked.

“Ohh you just wait until I tell my father about this!” she protested while wiggling most entertainingly across his lap.

“Go ahead and I’ll tell him how you’ve been conducting yourself lately,” Buddy answered her just as he lifted his hand.

His hand landed with a thuddy smack and was quickly followed by a loud, “Ouch!” from Heather.

“Let me go! You can’t do this!” she squealed and kicked to no avail. Buddy kept on, increasing the strength of his swats, landing one stinging spank right after another on her wiggling bottom.

“I am doing this and I’ll keep doing it until I think you’ve learned your lesson,” Buddy informed her sternly. “You’ve gotten out of hand and someone needs to bring you back to reality, young lady!”

Heather soon realized she wasn’t getting away from the onslaught on her behind and quickly began to regret stirring his anger.

Buddy grinned in satisfaction and landed several more hard spanks right on her sit spot.

“Owwwww,” she moaned as she gave up fighting and dropped her head.

That’s when Buddy was struck with the realization that he’d just thoroughly spanked his oldest friend. He suddenly felt uncomfortable and unsure of what to do next. He pulled Heather up and quickly set her back on her feet.

Heather jumped as if he’d struck her, and yanked her panties up and smoothed down her skirt. Hesitantly she began to say something, “Buddy…” but nothing else came out.

Buddy unsure of what should come next, started to reach for her but Heather suddenly turned and ran back in the direction of the cabin and the safety of the party. Mortified, he quickly headed for his car and drove home chiding himself all the while for handling the situation so badly.

The next day, Buddy told his parents he’d decided that he wanted to find an apartment for the upcoming school year early and beat the rush. Within a few days, he’d found what he was looking for, packed up, and left town. He couldn’t bear the thought of facing Heather and so he never sought her out again. He used the excuse of being busy with school to stay away that year, and then upon graduation he went right to work and rarely returned to the sleepy little place that was his hometown. Until now that is.

Buddy reluctantly pulled himself away from those thoughts and busied himself with the tree. Heather was a grown woman now and not a bratty nineteen-year old. She surely didn’t think of those times and wonder if things could have worked out differently. Did she?

What Buddy couldn’t know was that Heather was in the other room being haunted by those same memories. She’d given up fighting her yearnings years ago and accepted the fact that she loved the idea of a strong man who would spank her like the naughty brat she often felt like. A man who would spank her just like Buddy had that memorable summer. Gulping and trying desperately to ignore the butterflies in her stomach she hastily poured and downed a brandy. Anything to calm herself down, she thought.

She remembered the feeling of being over his strong lap as his hands pulled up her too-short skirt and then pulled down her panties. The soft and then stinging spanks he rained down on her bottom had thrilled her in ways she couldn’t understand then. She just knew she would love having him warm her bottom on a regular basis. She especially loved the way his eyes had darkened and his voice became stern as he had reached for her that unforgettable summer night. Heather sighed and closed her eyes against the memories. She still needed a good spanking. But she couldn’t let him know that! Could she?

Quickly, she poured herself and Buddy each a brandy and prepared to return to the living room. On a whim, she grabbed the bottle to take with her. She thought she might need it before this night was over. She then stopped to look at herself in the mirror and wondered if he’d notice the slight flush on her face.

A picture hung on the wall nearby of her family and she was transported in her mind once again to holidays long past. Back then during every Christmas season she made up a list of items she’d like to receive. It was her Christmas wish list. As silly as it might seem, she had a wish list in her mind now but there was only one wish on that list and it was a grown woman’s wish.

If only Buddy knew her Christmas wish was for a strong man to love and cherish her in that special way she fantasized about. She wanted a man capable of taking control of her and spanking her until she was breathless and eager to submit to him. Heather dreamed of someone to make her feel small and protected once again. Despite their many squabbles growing up, he’d always been there for her. He’d spanked her that summer when she’d been restless and out of control and made her feel good again.

That time was long past and many things had changed, but that one summer night had made an impression like none other. She blushed even deeper at this thought. She sighed…if only she could tell him somehow. But she’d been awful to him and pushed him away with her behavior. If only she could tell him she’d changed and was ready to submit to him in that special way. He was a grown man now though with a life of his own and he lived in a big city far away. She was a small-town girl full of starry-eyed dreams. Their lives were very different. With that thought, she tried to put her dreams and memories away and regain her composure before she rejoined him in the living room.

By the time Heather returned with their drinks, Buddy had formed a plan in his mind. He wasn’t sure if it was being back in this familiar house, seeing Heather after all these years, or the toll of loneliness on his heart, but he suddenly felt like this was where he belonged, with her. He was about to take a huge gamble and risk everything, but it would be worth it if he succeeded. Watching her approach only made his resolve stronger. He took his drink from her and looked down at her sternly, “I think we need to have a little talk, Heather.”

The butterflies in her stomach quickly turned to bats and Heather wondered if he knew how that tone of voice affected her. Her hands were visibly shaking as she set the brandy she was carrying down on the coffee table and tried to compose herself. She tried to look up at him but couldn’t and settled for clasping her hands in front of her and staring at them. Clearing her throat, she tried to sound light when she finally found her voice, “A talk? About what?”

Buddy noticed the color in her face and the slight break in her voice. She was nervous, that was fine because he was, too. This was going to either work out beautifully or be a huge disaster. But if he didn’t find out if Heather was the one for him and soon, he thought he might burst. He set down his brandy and turned to his lovely companion.

“Heather, you’ve been negligent and aren’t taking care of yourself the way you should,” Buddy put as stern a tone in his voice as he could muster.

“You need to have that walk shoveled and your porch cleared before you hurt yourself getting in and out of this house. It’s a hazard and you know it. I’m not going to let you get away with risking your well-being just because you wouldn’t ask for help. You will get these things taken care of and you will do it as soon as possible! You understand me, young lady?” he almost faltered on that last bit but he knew he had to go for the full effect.

“Well…I mean…it’s just that…” Heather stuttered and blushed and wondered if he had any idea what he was doing to her. “Is this really happening?” she thought wildly.

“Stop it!” Buddy interjected, “You have no excuse so quit trying to come up with one.”

Taking a deep breath, he plunged in again, “Do you remember how I spanked you that once when you were so out of control?”

Heather could only nod dumbly and look at the carpet in front of her. She wondered if he would really go through with this. It was like a dream. Could he really be the man she’d been waiting for? Or would he turn and run again?

Buddy decided he’d better move quickly before he came to his senses and changed his mind. He stepped over, took her small, soft hands in his, and led her over to the couch. He sat down and pulled her quickly over his lap and settled her in. Placing on arm across her, he pulled her close to him. Then, taking a deep breath to steady himself, he reached down and patted her soft bottom through her skirt.

“Are you ready for your spanking, Heather?” he asked, his voice husky with emotion.

“Yes, I am,” she whispered back breathlessly.

Deciding to do this properly, he reached down to pull up her skirt. He slowly exposed her panty-clad bottom and stopped to admire her curves. She was lovely. He could hardly breathe but somehow he went on. Buddy almost felt like he was in a dream as he hooked his fingers in the band of her panties and carefully pulled them down to just below her bottom. Her soft silky skin felt cool as he rested his hand on her right cheek.

“It’s time for me to spank you for being so careless and naughty,” he said softly as he raised his hand to deliver the first spank. His hand came down swiftly and landed a firm swat that left a pink impression on her smooth skin. Buddy raised his hand again and repeated the treatment to her other cheek. Heather moaned softly and began to lose herself in her feelings. Each spank left a warm place that was slowly making its way into her heart. She felt loved and cherished for the first time in so long that it made her ache inside. A tear escaped the corner of her eye and landed on the carpet below her.

Buddy continued to spank Heather with care while he scolded her for her carelessness, “You’ll learn to take care of yourself, young lady, or you’ll find yourself over my lap again. You understand me?”

She’d nod but couldn’t speak. As the spanks warmed her bottom and turned it a nice rosy color, she felt a release building deep within her. Buddy pulled her close to him as she began to wriggle and moan across his lap. As her spanking continued, his strong hand was quickly turning her bottom red and her struggles were becoming more frantic. He wasn’t completely sure what was happening to her but he was determined to see it through to its end.

Spanking her with hard, steady swats, Buddy continued to push Heather to her climax. She’d waited so long for this and now that it was happening she was confused by her feelings. She knew the release was coming and she needed it so much! Heather’s bottom was burning now but it felt wonderful to her. She began to push her bottom up to meet his hand. He was holding her tightly and delivering firm spanks to her eager bottom when it finally happened. Her back arched and she flailed wantonly across his lap as her climax took her over.

As Heather slowly calmed down, Buddy rubbed her back and spoke softly to her. Once she seemed calm, he pulled her up and into his arms. She whimpered slightly adjusting her very warm bottom on his lap, before throwing her arms around his neck and holding him tightly to her.

Heather was crying softly and he rocked her, kissed her neck, and held her close to his chest. She clung to him tightly, hoping fervently that this time things would end differently.

“Shhhh little one,” he whispered, “I have you.”

“Promise?” Heather’s voice cracked slightly with her question.

“Yes!” Buddy answered, “And not just for this one night, if you’ll have me. The business I mentioned earlier? I’m moving home.”

He turned her to him for a kiss and as soon as their lips met, they both felt and knew their feelings were true. Then Heather pulled back and began to cry in earnest.